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Saturday, April 29, 2017

Westland Loves Their Librarians Rally (Part II)!

Let's try this again since the last general meeting of the Library's ' Board of Directors (April 12th) got conveniently cancelled at the last minute due to a lack of a quorum!

Westland lost 5 fabulous librarians after the library's administration terminated them just 2 days after turning in union papers! The official reason they were given was due to "reorganizing" and replacing them with 3 part-time library associates who would work 36 hours a week without health benefits. We have since found out that they hired other librarians (people who also have Master's in Library Science) to take these positions, while refusing to allow the terminated ones to take these professionally unethical demotions. Patrons and librarians from all over the area went to the next 2 city council meetings to tell the city they were outraged and wanted their librarians back but the board of directors refuses to listen.

These librarians were budgeted for in a ten year millage that passed in 2012 by 71%, but the library board says they want to save money for an expansion to the building. They have cited "efficacy" as their main reason to "reorganize." They are saving money for this project by union busting, not paying people benefits, and absorbing the retirement plans of 4 of these librarians back into the general fund. We are now hearing that the expansion plans have been put on hold, but there are still currently no plans to hire these librarians back despite the overwhelming public outrage. The library board of directors has broken the public's trust. Westland patrons and staff deserve so much better.